Absolute Error
by Aniiksa
Summary: How can we be sure that the story we were told was the truth? What if it was really the product of a twisted mind? AU, AeriSeph. NOT AerisReno
1.

How can we be sure that the story we were told was the truth?  
What if it was really the product of a twisted mind - what if the true story was completely different?  
  
**ABSOLUTE ERROR** - the difference between the true value and the estimated value.  
  
**Chapter One**

Cloud stood with his back to the burning town. The events of the past day were flashing through his mind as a series of confused, cluttered images - the books in the library; pages of scientific notes swimming in front of his vision as he attempted to grasp the enormity of what he had just read - the fire, the burning town; the hilt of his giant sword growing hot in his hand as the flames licked at the wickedly sharp magical blade - the numbing pressure in his brain that seemed to be blocking his attempts to rationalise the things that were happening to him - the silvery hair of the young recruit who had accompanied him on this mission; the eighteen year-old boy who was kneeling, dumbfounded, by the body of one of the villagers...  
Cloud focused on the boy. He was staring blankly into space, open mouthed, his eyes wide. Slowly, he focused on Cloud, the blank stare filling with betrayal and confusion. The lanky boy rose to his feet, his eyes never breaking contact with Cloud's. Trembling, the boy approached the rogue SOLDIER general, who smirked in amusement - the boy was afraid of him! That was how it should be - the weak, heretical humans should recognise his power; they should bow before his might! They should indeed fear-  
The junior SOLDIER was quite close now, and Cloud noticed with a start that he was not trembling with fear, but with a barely controlled anger. Puzzled by the anxiety this young boy caused in him, Cloud covered it by thrusting out his sword at neck height, stopping Sephiroth in his tracks.  
"Are you going to kill me like you killed the rest of the village, then, you coward?" Sephiroth's green eyes were narrowed in hatred as he addressed Cloud.  
Cloud lowered his sword and looked haughtily at Sephiroth.  
"It's Seth, isn't it? Seth, or Seb, or something. Whatever. It doesn't really matter - you humans are all alike to me. You have all been persecuting my mother and our kind for many hundreds of years. Now, I am here to remedy the situation. I shall release mother from captivity, and together we shall take back the world from the usurping humans."  
"You mean you think that you're some sort of super-human?" Sephiroth's expression was part-mocking.  
"No. We are of an alien race. Our ancestors landed on this planet and cultivated it, teaching the primitive native race how to survive and develop. The humans called us the Ancients, and when they were strong enough they unleashed a deadly virus among us. It wiped us all out, decimating our people, until there was only mother left. She lay dormant, encased in the ice at the Northern Crater for hundreds of years. Then the humans found her, and her torment began again. Now I am here, and we will have our revenge."  
He pushed past the silver-haired recruit, who was frowning in confusion. "Get out of my way, I'm going to see my mother."  
Sephiroth stared at Cloud, stunned, trying to absorb what he had just heard. Suddenly, the enormity of his task hit him, and it looked as though the future of the planet relied on him being able to kill Cloud before he managed to carry out his plans. He pushed the thought away, desperately focusing on the anger he felt at his trusted leader's betrayal and madness.  
"My name is Sephiroth," he snarled at Cloud's retreating back before he himself gave chase "Remember that."

Silver hair fell across his face as Sephiroth dropped his head into his hands. After five years he could still remember every tiny detail of that horrific day, no matter how hard he tried to forget. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a figure enter the room and he looked up.  
The most beautiful, bewitching woman he had ever seen in his tormented life was standing in the doorway of the bar, leaning casually against the doorframe and observing him with concern in her bright green eyes.  
"Sephiroth?" the sound of his name on her lips sent a tiny shiver down his spine "Are you alright?"  
"Aeris" he spoke her name as if it were a blessing "Yes. I'm fine. I was just thinking about some things."  
She crossed the room to stand behind him and rubbed his back soothingly with her hands.  
"Nibelheim again?" she asked, her voice soft.  
He nodded, slowly "I just can't get it out of my head. The searing heat, the destruction, everyone in the village dead..."  
"Would it help if you spoke to someone about it?" Aeris's skilled hands kneaded the tension out of his muscles as they talked "The only version I ever heard of the story was in the Shin-Ra newspapers."  
Sephiroth frowned "Shin-Ra only told the public what they wanted them to hear. None of those papers were accurate."  
"I didn't think they were," Aeris agreed with him "They said that it was all your fault - that you had lost your mind and indiscriminately killed the villagers, then burnt the town. The part that I really found hard to believe was when they said you had gone on to destroy Nibelheim's mako reactor, killing General Cloud when he tried to stop you. None of it ever really rang true."  
Sephiroth found himself smiling - even back then, she had somehow known he was innocent - the thought lifted his spirits slightly. Of all the people in the world that he wanted to believe him, Aeris was the only one who really mattered. "Shin-ra didn't want to admit that their great general had been mentally unstable, so they blamed me for the entire incident."  
"So, what really happened?"  
"For some reason, Cloud lost his mind. It was so sudden. He was talking to me in the morning, telling me that he had found a hidden staircase in the old Shin-Ra mansion, leading to the basement, and he planned to investigate it. That night, he never returned. None of us were unduly worried - no monster was likely to have bested him in a fight, so we assumed he had decided to stay in the mansion overnight. The next morning, there was still no sign of him, so I went down into the basement to look for him. There were two doors down there; one was locked. As I reached out to open the second door, it flew open, and Cloud stormed past me and back up the stairs. At the time, I didn't realise anything was wrong - I just thought he was angry. I went into the room, wanting to find out what had happened. It looked like a library - there were shelves on all but one of the walls, full of books and journals, all neatly labelled. They looked like scientific or medical notes to me, talking about someone called Jenova - Ouch!"  
Sephiroth leaped out of his chair as Aeris's fingers dug painfully into his shoulders "What was that for?"  
Aeris stood, staring blankly at her hands. She slowly raised her eyes to meet Sephiroth's, smiling nervously, apologetically.  
"Sorry... it was that name, JENOVA. I'm sure I've heard it before, when I was little. It surprised me, that's all."  
She raised a hand to his shoulder "I'm sorry. Did I hurt you much?"  
Sephiroth shook his head, slowly, placing his hand over hers. "Not really, it was just the shock of it - your fingers digging in when I was so relaxed. Don't worry about it. I've been through worse."  
Aeris couldn't break eye contact. Lost in the glowing depths of his eyes, her mind wouldn't focus properly "Oh..." she breathed, dreamily. Unconsciously, her tongue flicked out and moistened dry lips, drawing Sephiroth's gaze inexorably to them. Absently, he leaned closer to her, and she felt his breath on her lips. Her eyes drifted shut as their lips almost touched...

Suddenly, there was a crashing outside, and the sound of raucous voices coming closer. Aeris and Sephiroth pulled apart, startled and blushing. The door of the Seventh Heaven burst open, and Barret, Jessie, Biggs and Wedge clattered into the bar. Jumpily, Aeris clasped and unclasped her hands.  
"Hey Barret, Jess, guys. How did the raid go this time?"  
"Smoothly," grunted Barret as he hefted his large frame into a chair, which creaked ominously under his weight, "Very smoothly."  
His gaze alighted on Sephiroth, and he eyed him suspiciously, "Aeris, I don't think he should still be here. He's an ex-Shin-Ra SOLDIER, as you well know. I'm certain that he's tricking us."  
Aeris frowned, "He's been with us for over two weeks now and nothing's happened! How much more proof do you need?"  
"That's no proof at all, and you know it. He could be trying to gain our confidence. Then, when we least expect it, he'll turn on us." Barret argued.  
"Oh, please!" Aeris snorted disdainfully "How naive do you think I am? Sephiroth's had countless opportunities to hurt me, or turn me over to Shin-Ra if he had wanted to, but he hasn't. Doesn't that count for anything?"  
"No. That's the point. I wouldn't mind so much if every time we went out on a job you weren't left on your own with him. We're all aware that he knows you're on the list of 'Shin-Ra's most wanted', even if none of us knows why, and if he wants to regain his Shin-Ra status all he has to do is hand you in whenever he likes. He could just be biding his time."  
Sephiroth narrowed his eyes at Barret "Look, I would never do that to her. I wish you'd believe me. I know what the Shin-Ra are like." Over the past week, while Aeris had been caring for him and healing the injuries he had sustained during the most recent of Shin-Ra's attempts to recapture him, he had grown very close to her. Every time he looked at her, his body told him that she was extremely beautiful, and even the thought of giving her to the monsters at Shin-Ra disgusted him.  
Barret had risen to his feet, angrily, shouting "Don't try to convince me that you're on our side, 'cause I know you're nothing but Shin-Ra scum! Why don't you take your lying self and go right back to them. You're not wanted here!"  
Sephiroth stared at Barret as Aeris hurried out of the room, barely controlling the frustrated tears that were welling up in her eyes. They listened to her footsteps ascending the wooden stairs, then her bedroom door shut loudly.  
"That was clever of you." Sephiroth snorted. Barret glared at him and stormed out of the Seventh Heaven and onto the street, followed by Biggs.   
Jessie was sitting at the bar, slowly drinking a pint of lager, staring into space and pretending she had not been listening, and Wedge gave no signal that he had been listening in the first place, as he was curled up in an overstuffed leather armchair in the corner of the room, snoring softly.  
Sephiroth sighed and headed upstairs.

He could hear Aeris sobbing in her room and he knocked lightly on the door.  
"Who is it?" came the choked reply. Sephiroth could hear sounds of movement and rustling behind the door.  
"It's me, Sephiroth. Can I come in, Aeris?" he asked.  
"Wait a minute," came the reply "I'm changing."  
Sephiroth's hand dropped away from the doorhandle as if it were a hot poker. Gulping, he stared at the opposite wall and tried to concentrate on grass, and trees, and flowers, and birds, and bees, and... no, not birds and bees... not...   
Suddenly, all he could do was focus on what bees were really doing when they travelled from flower to flower. Blinking, he shook his head.  
"Okay, I'm ready. You can come in, Seph."  
That came as a welcome distraction from his thoughts of flower pollination. Gratefully, he turned the doorhandle and walked into Aeris's bedroom.  
Aeris was perched on the edge of her bed. She had changed into her nightdress, a flattering pale lilac slip trimmed in darker, plum coloured lace.  
His observations ended swiftly when his eyes reached her face. She was staring glumly at the floor, looking more miserable than he had ever seen her before. Concerned, he sat down next to her and took her hand.  
"Aeris? What's the matter?" his voice was soft.  
She looked up at him, her wide green eyes bright with unshed tears. "Barret, mainly." she sighed "He's my friend, he really is, but he can be so... stubborn and pigheaded sometimes!" she made an angry gesture with her arm "Sometimes he makes me feel like I'm a teenager whose father disapproves of her boyfriend! It makes me want to run up to him and shout 'Listen! I'm all grown up now, and I will love whomsoever I wish, without having to have your permission!"  
Sephiroth looked sideways at her "Really?"  
Aeris realised what she had just said, and she gulped, turning away from him.  
Sephiroth took her chin gently between his thumb and forefinger and turned her head back towards him.  
"Really?" he repeated, quietly.  
He moved closer to her so their lips were barely inches apart. Their interrupted almost-kiss from earlier was foremost in their minds. Aeris breathed in slowly, her lips touching his in their first, perfect, tender, electric kiss.  
One of Sephiroth's arms snaked around Aeris's back, drawing her closer. The feel of the silky nightdress under his fingertips, warmed by the heat from her flushed skin, sent his mind hurtling back to thoughts of pollination, not necessarily among plantlife, and his kisses grew deeper.  
Aeris gasped as their lips parted briefly, tangling her hands in Sephiroth's long, silver hair and rejoining the kiss.  
They parted breathlessly a few minutes later and stared at each other. Aeris was the first to break the silence.  
"Well, I suppose that's it then. You and me. Are we-?"  
"Aeris, you are the most incredibly beautiful woman I have ever met. I was attracted to you the first moment I saw you, but the more I got to know you, the more I fell in love with you."  
"Seph..." Aeris looked adoringly at the muscled warrior "I'd love to say the same about you, but..."  
Sephiroth looked alarmed "But what?"  
Aeris giggled "But I don't think you'd want me to call you beautiful!"  
Sephiroth scowled at her in mock viciousness "Oh, so you don't think I'm beautiful, huh? Men have died for saying less!"  
"Okay, I concede. You're very pretty, Seph. Do you wear eyeliner?"   
Aeris fell backwards onto her bed with a shriek as Sephiroth launched himself at her, growling "Now you've gone too far! Prepare to be tickled to death!"  
She writhed underneath him, laughing and trying vainly to escape his strong tickling grip. Eventually, they both collapsed, exhausted.  
Sephiroth sighed contentedly, his arm wrapped around the willowy girl lying next to him. "Do you give up?"  
Aeris yawned, inching closer to him "Never." She turned her head and looked at him "You know, I feel like I've been waiting for you all of my life."  
Sephiroth planted a kiss on her forehead "Mm, me too - this just feels so right. And now I've found you, something pretty drastic would have to happen to make me leave you."

Outside, Barret stood scowling, Biggs at his side, both looking upwards through the open window at Aeris and Sephiroth.  
"This has got to stop..."


	2. 

**Chapter Two**

Aeris and Sephiroth lay, side by side, in Aeris's bed. Aeris was sound asleep, her hair spread over the pillow, her lips parted slightly, her chest rising and falling softly with each slumbering breath. Sephiroth was dozing, drifting in and out of wakefulness, Aeris's comforting warmth next to him. He gradually sank downwards into proper sleep, hugging Aeris tightly against him.  
In the early hours of the morning, Sephiroth became aware that he was wide awake. Aeris's warmth was gone from beside him, but that was not because she was no longer there. She was just very, very cold.  
He put his hand on her shoulder and shook her gently, intending to wake her up and frowning when there was no response. There was something very wrong here...  
His eyes trailed down her body, and a sharp gasp escaped his lips - she wasn't breathing.  
He sat up, panicking, only then noticing the blood that was spread across the sheets. It was no longer spreading, meaning that Aeris was long dead.  
Horrified, Sephiroth jammed his fist against his mouth to keep himself from crying out. There was a large, jagged sword wound across her abdomen that Sephiroth instantly recognised.  
"Cloud?" He looked around the room, gritting his teeth. He had seen countless numbers of people killed in that same way in Nibelheim, on the night of the disaster. He couldn't believe that Cloud could still be alive, but there was no doubt in his mind that the ugly slash ripped across Aeris's still, bloody body had been made by the Ultima Weapon. "Cloud, you bastard! Where are you? Show yourself so I can kill you properly!"  
"And why would I want to let you do that?" Sephiroth turned, sharply, to face Cloud. He was sitting casually on the edge of the bed next to Aeris, winding a strand of her long, auburn hair around his finger. His hands were covered in blood.  
Sephiroth shook his head in disbelief "You killed her. I had finally found happiness, and you killed her. The only woman I have ever loved, and you took her away from me..." the enormity of this fact hit him suddenly, and he stifled a sob.  
Realisation welled up in him, Aeris was dead, killed by Cloud. He was covered in her blood. Aeris was lying next to him, and she was dead.  
He felt sick.  
As he stared at her, Sephiroth focused clearly on Aeris's body for the first time. Her beautiful lilac nightdress was stained crimson, the lace trimming torn in places. The hem was pushed halfway up her thighs, the silky material rumpled. She was generally disarrayed, as though there had been a struggle before she was killed.  
Eyes blazing, Sephiroth looked up at Cloud. "What did you do to her before you killed her?" he snarled "Why is her clothing torn? If you defiled her in any way, I swear I'll..."  
"You'll do what?" Cloud smirked at him and made a gesture with his hand "Stop."  
As soon as the command was given, Sephiroth felt his body stiffening. He tried to move, but found he could not.  
"If I do this, what will you do?" Cloud rested his hand on Aeris's thigh and pushed the hem of the nightdress up a further inch. Sephiroth tried to lunge forward, but the Stop spell was still in effect - he could do nothing but watch as Cloud laughed at him.  
"Now I have your undivided attention, do you really want to know what I did to her?" Sephiroth's eyes widened as he tried to shake his head. Cloud ignored him.  
"First, I woke her up, like this;" Cloud slid his hand under Aeris's head, grabbing a handful of her hair and kissing her roughly. "Obviously, whilst she was still alive, she put up a bit of a fight, crying out and suchlike." Cloud put his hand on her upper thigh "Then I did this;" he slid the fabric of her nightgown further up her leg, squeezing her thigh "She didn't like that much either, nor did she like it when I did this, she struggled quite a lot;" His hand went to her chest, fondling her right breast "That's when the lace tore, of course." He looked up at Sephiroth, smiling coldly "Then I killed her."  
Sephiroth blinked, unable to move, unable to cry out. He wanted to break down and cry, he wanted to shout out in rage, he wanted to hold Aeris, to clutch her cold, still body close to him and tell her that it was all okay now, he wanted to throttle Cloud, to make him pay dearly for Aeris's life.  
Instead, he was frozen in place. He could only watch as Cloud thrust the blade of his sword towards him. He felt searing pain as the magically enhanced weapon ripped into his chest...  
  
...and he woke up in a cold sweat, clutching at his chest with one hand and groping blindly for his weapon with the other.  
When he realised with a shock that there was no pain, no sword, no blood, he looked over at Aeris, biting his lip in anticipation. Her skin was intact, her nightdress was as perfect and unruffled as it had been when she had fallen asleep, and she was slumbering peacefully, a quiet smile gracing her lips.  
Sephiroth closed his eyes in relief.  
He was puzzled, though, and worried - it had all been a nightmare, but it had been so incredibly real - he could still visualise every single detail, could see Aeris's dishevelled body, could smell the thick, cloying stench of blood in his nostrils, could feel Cloud's weapon embed itself in his chest...  
What did it mean? He wrapped his arms around Aeris and pulled her closer to him "I'm never going to let anything happen to you. You're safe with me." he whispered, burying his face in her shoulder, lips caressing the smooth, pale skin there. Aeris mumbled something in her sleep, sighing contentedly as his arms tightened around her. Gratefully, he drifted into a restful, dreamless sleep.  
  
They were both jerked rudely awake a few hours later by a loud thumping on the door. Barret burst into the room, breathing hard.  
He scowled at the couple and snorted disdainfully. "If you two 'lovebirds' could disentangle for even a few seconds, you might realise that we are all in very real danger..."  
"Why? What's happening?" Aeris cried, alarm crossing her pretty features.   
"They're dropping the upper plate onto sector seven. If we don't stop them, the Turks will blow up the support pillar and everyone will be crushed, including us!"  
Sephiroth tugged on his black pants, ran a comb through his hair and grabbed his leather trenchcoat. Aeris pulled on her discarded pink dress, tied her hair back with a pink ribbon and followed him outside. They joined Barret by the protective wire fence, staring up at the tiny maintenance platform halfway up the huge pillar. Aeris dragged the back of her hand across her eyes, and Sephiroth wrapped an arm protectively around her shoulders. She smiled lovingly up at him, and as their eyes met, the tenderness that passed between them was almost tangible.  
Jessie rushed towards the three carrying a six year old girl "This is awful! Marlene here is the only person I could find who isn't too stoned or drunk to understand what I'm trying to tell them! She says she has no parents and I couldn't find anyone with her, so I thought I'd better bring her straight here."  
"That's all you could find? One girl? You're slipping, Jessie." Barret exclaimed angrily "Go back in there and find some damn people!" Jessie took a step back in surprise, then turned obediently and began to walk dejectedly back into the slums. Sephiroth stopped her with a hand on her arm. "Don't. It's okay, you shouldn't go back in there."  
"What are you playing at, pretty boy? You trying to take over AVALANCHE, too?" Barret scowled "I told her to get in there and find more people, and that's what she's going to do!"  
"She's not going anywhere." Sephiroth held his ground "If what Jessie's saying is true, then nobody will either believe her or care when she tries to get them to leave. Sending her back in there will only endanger her life."  
"Well, looky here! Sephiroth, the great traitor SOLDIER, is trying to get all the girls on his side! What's the matter, trenchcoat-boy? Can't go anywhere without a fanclub?" Barret's remarks caused Aeris's eyes to widen, and she stepped forwards to confront him "Barret, stop it! Not only are you over-reacting quite shockingly, when Sephiroth was only using common-sense to tell that if Jessie goes back in there she might get crushed, but you are also ignoring the fact that the longer we stay around here, the more chance there is that the pillar will be destroyed before we get there to do anything about it!"  
Barret was stumped. All he could do was nod, silently. Aeris stooped, picked up Marlene in her arms and looked questioningly at Jessie "Is there anywhere safe I can take her out of this sector?" Jessie nodded "Sector five. There's an old church on the outskirts. It's the base for our allies, BLIZZARD. You should both be safe there. You can't miss it, it's the only place sunlight ever falls in the slums." Aeris nodded her understanding. Sephiroth turned to her, concerned "Will you be alright?"  
She smiled at him, "Of course I will. Good luck!"  
She leant towards him and they kissed, briefly and tenderly, then she took Marlene by the hand and they both dashed out of the doomed sector, heading for the hideout of AVALANCHE's sister group, BLIZZARD.  
Barret turned his gaze upwards once more "If we get up there in time, we might stop them blowing it up... C'mon!" He, Sephiroth, Jessie, Wedge and Biggs all ran through the gaping hole in the fence caused by falling rubble from the pillar and charged up the metal service staircase to the maintenance platform, where the Turks were busy linking one of Shin-Ra's famous Mako-bombs into the circuitry.

As they reached the maintenance platform, they were met rather unenthusiastically by Reno. He brushed a few stray hairs out of his face and leant back against the console. "I suppose you're here to stop us. It won't work you know."  
His finger hovered over the detonate button and Sephiroth stepped forwards, the Masamune making a metallic ring as he slid it out of its sheath "Touch that button and you'll be dead before you hit the ground."  
"Hey... you're that SOLDIER bloke... the renegade that killed Cloud!" Reno took a couple of steps backwards "You've got a lot of nerve coming back here. You're not in the president's good books. You should leave right now, or you're going to get hurt."  
Sephiroth was not in the mood for Reno's scolding "I'm going to get hurt, am I? Who by? You?" He drew the Masamune and leant forward with a sarcastic smile flashing across his face.  
Reno took two more steps backwards "Look, I really don't want to fight you guys..."  
They were distracted by the whirring of helicopter blades, and the Turks' chopper rose into sight. Reno jammed the palm of his hand onto the button, and then grabbed hold of the rope ladder that had been dropped for him. He swung himself up into the helicopter, relieved.  
Barret scowled and raised his gunarm "Prepare to die, you Shin-Ra bastard."  
Sephiroth's eyes widened and he slapped Barret's arm down just as he was about to fire "No! Don't shoot! They have Aeris!"  
Her scared and tearful face appeared at one of the windows. She was shouting something and banging on the window with her fists. No sound could be heard through the tough plexi-glass window, but as the helicopter rose she pressed her palms to the glass and mouthed Sephiroth's name.  
He reached one hand towards her, anguish on his face. "NO!" he yelled as the pillar began to disintegrate and the helicopter took Aeris beyond his line of vision.  
Jessie yelled frantically at Sephiroth as he stood in the middle of the crumbling platform staring into space "Sephiroth! If you don't come over here NOW you'll be killed... SEPHIROTH!!!" she threw her hands up in despair "Barret, can't you do something? Please?"  
His eyes narrowed, but he yanked Sephiroth towards the hanging chain and out of his reverie. The pillar imploded as they swung away from it, and the huge plate fell, crashing into the Sector Seven slums and crushing everyone and everything within.


	3. 

Chapter Three

As Tseng pulled Aeris away from the window, her knees buckled and she collapsed against him. Her home and bsiness, the Seventh Heaven, had been crushed by the Sector Seven Plate, she had finally been caught by the Shin-Ra and would eventually be turned over to Professor Hojo for experimentation, and on top of all these things she had just seen Sephiroth killed in the pillar collapse.  
All this had left her feeling weak and empty, and when Tseng pushed her away from him, she fell to the floor and lay sprawled there, sobbing. Reno casually strolled in from the cockpit.  
"Rude's piloting. We'll be about another fifteen minutes," he looked over at Aeris  
"You finally got her then? Hojo's latese research specimen?"  
Tseng smirked, pleased with himself.  
"I did indeed. Which is more than you were ever able to do. I'll be getting a very nice pay bonus for this beauty."  
Reno flicked his middle finger up at Tseng, who laughed coldly; "Think you can look after her for ten minutes? I'm going to check up on Rude's piloting."  
"Well Rude's not gonna like that too much" Reno said to Tseng's retreating back. Turning to Aeris, he laid a hand on her shoulder.  
"I'm sorry. There was nothing I could do. Blowing up the pillar was a direct order from President Shin-Ra - if I hadn't done it, someone else would have." He clasped one of her hands with both of his  
"And I'm sorry that after all those years I tried to keep you safe from Hojo, there was one time when I couldn't be there to warn you." Aeris raised her tear-filled emerald eyes to meet his sapphire ones.  
"It's okay," she said, composing herself "I don't blame you - I blame Shin-Ra."  
She held up a hand to silence Reno as he opened his mouth to protest. "And yes, I know that you're a part of Shin-Ra, but you're willing to go against them, you've proved that much to me. You don't believe in their moral code, you don't like what they're doing to Planet, and you don't get sick pleasure out of your job like the other Turks."  
"I used to." Reno interrupted. Aeris silenced him again, pressing her finger against his lips. "Yes, but not any more. You helped me and for that I am forever grateful."  
When Reno looked doubtful, she continued "Reno, when you were sent to capture me that first time, and many times susequently, you let me escape. You gave me five years of my life that could have been spent in Hojo's lab. You did everything you could for me. I know it's not really your fault but... Oh Reno, why is he dead?"  
She hugged him tightly, squeezing the breath out of him and crying on his left shoulder.

At that moment, Rude walked in. He looked at Reno and Aeris and laughed.  
"Bloody hell, Reno - you just can't stop girls falling at your feet, can you?" Reno stepped away from Aeris, looking sheepish and rubbing the back of his neck. The blush spread across his face as he attempted to look cool and collected "I guess it must just be my sheer animal magnetism - I just can't keep them away!"  
Rude slapped him on the back "Of course!"  
He made to walk back into the cockpit, but stopped when he was halfway across the floor. Still with his back to them he spoke, his voice taking on a different tone.  
"Or maybe it's because you've been using your position of authority to decieve your superiors and help this woman for the past five years. That could be it."  
He turned around. Reno and Aeris were staring at him, wide-eyed and dumbstruck "Y-you heard us talking?" Reno stammered. Rude nodded, a grim look on his face.  
Aeris stared at them both, her eyes were very wide, very green, and her face was deathly pale. "Please don't let Reno be punished because of what he did for me, oh please!" she begged Rude. He nodded down at her.  
"Rest assured lady, although I disapprove -" he glared at Reno "Completely of Reno's actions, he's my team-mate, and my friend, and out of loyalty I'm not going to report him."  
Reno sighed in releif and Rude waved a warning finger at him "You're an idiot for talking openly about it around Tseng, though - you know he doesn't like you, and he'd be thrilled if any opportunity presented itself that would allow him to discredit you and take over as the leader of the Turks."  
He frowned as Reno shook his head.  
"To be honest, I'm sick of the whole mess. I'd be perfectly happy to give it all up tomorrow if I had the choice. You know that. I just can't do this. I can't hurt people anymore."  
Rude's eyes softened slightly "I know. It shows sometimes. That's the problem. Tseng is power-hungry; give him enough reasons to usurp you and he will. I know it sounds stupid, but I'd rather you left of your own accord - I don't want to see you fired."  
His eyes met Reno's, and for a fraction of a moment understanding flickered between them. "Just ... go out with a bang. Make sure you leave Shin-Ra as a legend." He turned briskly and went back into the cockpit. Reno's hand found Aeris's again as the huge Shin-Ra building loomed in the windows of the helicopter.  
"I don't have a clue how I'll do it, Aeris, but I promise I'll get you out of there... somehow."

Sephiroth groaned. His body felt like people had spent the last hour throwing bricks at it. There were scrapes up his arms and he was covered in dust. He cursed when he saw the huge rips in his trousers and shirt.  
"Dammit, these were almost new!"  
There was a strangled female moan from somewhere to his left. He grit his teeth and forced himself to stand. Once he was moving about he found the aches lessened, although he did have to move carefully. Searching gingerly through the rubble in the vague direction of the noise he found Jessie pinned down by a large chunk of wood. She moaned again when he tried to move it and her eyes half-opened and focused blearily on him.  
"Sephiroth?" Her voice was husky, her throat clogged with dust "I can't move."  
He propped her head up so that she could see the wooden spar "You're trapped under that. I don't think I can lift it off by myself." He made an upwards pushing action with his hands "Do you think you could try to push it up while I lift it?"  
She licked her lips with a dry tongue and tried to swallow. Nodding her head, she whispered "I'll try."  
Sephiroth braced himself, his bruised muscles screaming at him, and lifted the heavy wooden block with all the strength he could muster. Jessie clenched her teeth and strained her muscles, pushing upwards with as much force as she could in her weakened state.  
The wooden spar shifted, and Sephiroth strained to the side, pulling it off her. He slumped over, muscles aching, his legs weak, breathing hard. Jessie moaned as she tried to move. "Fuck that hurts." She dragged herself onto her hands and knees and sat back on her heels, wincing as she did so.  
"I feel like someone's painstakingly smashed every single inch of my body with a small hammer..."  
Sephiroth nodded "I know exactly how you feel"  
Jessie looked sharply to her right as a huge mound of rubble erupted, revealing an irate Barret.  
"Damn them £ing Shin-Ra B$£&%$!" He seemed virtually unscathed, and fished Biggs and Wedge out of the rubble with no effort at all. He then fixed his steely glare on Sephiroth.  
"This is all your fault, leather-boy. They took Aeris, they destroyed Sector Seven, and it's all your damn fault!"  
Sephiroth fought to keep his temper, turning instead to sarcasm "Why is this my fault? And who are you calling 'leather boy', Mr 'I'm-so-big-and-badass-because-I've-got-a-bloody-great-machine-gun-stuck-to-my-arm'?"  
Barret frowned and Sephiroth placed a placating hand on his bulky shoulder.  
"Look. I know you don't trust me, but I promise you, I'm as much an enemy of Shin-Ra as you are." He narrowed his eyes "There are people who work there whom I would gladly slay - people who care for no human life but their own. We should work together to find Aeris and rescue her before she falls into their hands."  
He held out his hand to Barret "Truce?"  
Barret took Sephiroth's hand and shook it brusquely "Temporary truce."  
Sephiroth nodded and turned to look up at the Shin-Ra building, now visible through the gaping hole where the Sector Seven plate should have been.  
"The Shin-Ra destroyed the Seventh Heaven - do you know of anywhere we could go while we work out our plans?" He turned to look at Barret, who rubbed his chin thoughtfully.  
Jessie stepped in, "I know a good place - it's where I told Aeris to take Marlene."  
Sephiroth looked up at her, aqua eyes questioning "Where?"  
"A church, in Sector Five, not far from here. It's home to our sister rebel group, BLIZZARD. The leaders, Iraya, Nishki and Sinneakh, are good friends of ours. They'll let us stay there for a while, I'm sure."  
Biggs looked at her in amused surprise and turned away, smirking to himself.   
Sephiroth smiled at Jessie. "Can we go there now?"  
She nodded and turned, walking away "Just follow me."  
Sephiroth paused, and looked back as the others headed to Sector Five. He scowled up at the Shin-Ra building, looming ominously through the dusty gap that should have been Sector Seven.  
"We're coming to get you Aeris... Hang on, love..."


	4. 

Chapter Four

Aeris surveyed the prison cell she had been manhandled into. The walls were a stark white and the tiled floor was freezing cold. The cell was empty except for a narrow bed in one corner and a partitioned section containing a steel toilet and a washbasin. Aeris raised an eyebrow.  
"Ah. Creature comforts."  
She sat on the bed, which was hard and lumpy "I might as well be sleeping on the floor." she remarked to herself. She tried to think about to keep her mind off things, but eventually her thoughts wandered back to the events of the past few weeks.  
  
She had just swatted the final few drinks from her bar and was sweeping up the broken glass when Sephiroth had stumbled in. He had been barely conscious, and at first his hair and face had been so covered with blood that she had not recognised him. His arm had been broken in several places and there was a huge gash along his left temple. He had been bleeding profusely from multiple lacerations on his chest and legs, and Aeris had been forced to strip him almost naked to clean all his injuries. Once she had washed away the blood, she could see that apart fromhis arm and head he had not been injured too badly. She had worked her soothing, healing magic on his head wound, watching in satisfaction as the cool green lightcaused the skin to knit back together, leaving not even so much as a scar. She had brushed the long, silver hair back from his face, wiping away the last traces of blood, before finally steeling herself for the mammoth task of fixing his broken arm. She had to make sure the bones were set straight before healing him, otherwise the arm would heal crooked, and as she prepared to straighten out the limb, which was lying at a very grotesque, unnatural angle, she had silently thanked the gods that he was still unconscious. After twenty minutes of easing broken sections of bone together and healing them straight, she had stepped back and taken her first proper look at him. It was then that she realised who he was - the poor SOLDIER that Shin-Ra had pinned all the blame for the Nibelheim Disaster onto. His name and picture had been plastered all over the Midgar papers five years ago, after the crisis. She had been surveying his sculpted body, clad only in boxers, with an approving eye, when he had awoken. She had looked away quickly, blushing, feeling his eyes on her. She had spoken rapidly, eyes firmly fixed on the wall in front of her.  
"You were injured. I had to take your clothes off to heal you. I didn't..."  
"It's okay." He had said "You healed me, and I'm grateful. But... how exactly did you mend my arm? It should have taken weeks to heal... but it feels fine now."  
Aeris had distinctly heard him get up from the bed, stretch, and pad over to stand behind her. She had felt a blush spreading across her cheeks, down her neck and across her chest. As thoughts crept into her head of that toned, muscular body standing almost naked behind her, the blush had spread over her whole body. She had managed to stammer out a reply somehow.  
"I am a somewhat gifted magic user. Healing magic is my speciality. Your clothes were ruined - I'm going to have to get you new ones..."  
Gods! She winced inwardly - she hadn't been able to focus on anything but his nudity! ...But still, he did have a -very- nice body...!  
  
Later on, Barret had returned. He had been suspicious of Sephiroth from the moment he set eyes on him, and had held him at gunpoint while Aeris desperately tried to convince Barret not to shoot him. Sephiroth had examined his fingernails in a bored manner, seemingly unperturbed by the gun pointed at his head.  
As Aeris had spent more time with Sephiroth, and learnt more about his past, her feelings for him had blossomed and grown. They had become closer as the weeks went by, culminating in their admissions of mutual love on the previous night. Aeris found herself sighing wistfully, wishing that they had consummated their relationship, indulged in at least one night of passion. She found it ironic that the one man she would have gladly given her virginity to had been killed before she had been able to. Tears brimmed beneath her tightly closed eyelids and she stifled a sob. She had felt something for him that she had never before felt for another. Now he was dead, and she would never hear his voice again, never touch his skin, never run her hands through his beautiful silver hair... never feel him touch her as she longed for him to...  
She tried not to acknowledge the thoughts, as though by not admitting he was dead, she could bring him back to life. Tears flowed unbidden from her eyes, and she buried her pretty face in her hands, strands of chestnut hair falling forward, shoulders shaking with her silent sobs.  
So immersed in her greif was she that she never heard Reno quietly opening the door of her prison and stepping inside, being careful to leave it unlocked. He stood watching her for a few minutes, chewing his bottom lip guiltily. He had known her for five years, and although all his Turk instincts denied it, the rapidly growing human side of him held great affection for her. Over the past few years, images of her had appeared in his head at the most inopportune moments - usually when he was trying to have sex with a woman. Eventually he found it was much easier to close his eyes and pretend that the woman bouncing up and down on top of him was Aeris. It was never quite believable - mainly because Reno felt that Aeris was probably not the sort of girl to bounce on top of _anyone_, but also because the stupid bints usually opened their mouths and spoke at some point, shattering his image.  
Looking at Aeris now, even in her throes of misery, he felt himself drawn to her.  
Sitting down next to her on the rock-hart pallet bed, he draped a comforting arm around her shoulders and drew her slightly closer to him. She was a little startled, not having realised he was there before, and she looked up in surprise, eyes wide, lips moist with tears and slightly parted.  
Reno found his mouth millimetres away from those delectable lips, and blinked, temptation beckoning him. It would be so easy just to move slightly and...  
Reno found his mouth _upon_ those lips, cupping the side of her face in his hand and caressing her cheek with his thumb. He deepened the kiss, his tongue finding its way into her mouth, and the soft gasp that this prompted from her caused him to press her body closer to his with his free arm, seeking more contact. His hand left her cheek to trail down her neck, and down further until it rested on her left breast. Aeris arched into him at his gentle touch, and the feeling of her body so close to his caused any final vestiges of his self-control to melt away. Kissing her passionately, Reno pressed Aeris back onto the bed, his hands roaming her body.  
Aeris moaned at Reno's touch, her thoughts hazy. Vague protests floated into her mind, silenced almost immediately by the sensations coursing through her body. She needed this contact - needed to experience the earthy human sensations that Reno was giving her. She felt Reno's hands move to the buttons on her dress and slowly begin to undo them, one by one, his lips still caressing hers, and she wrapped her arms around him, thinking alternately of both the devastatingly attractive red-haired man on top of her and of her silver-haired warrior. Suddenly, Reno pulled away and Aeris looked around, dazed and confused.  
Reno had been unbuttoning Aeris's dress, the taste of her lips intoxicating him, when a cold laugh had jerked him to his senses. Leaping back as if he had been stung, Reno looked up at the door.  
Tseng stood, framed in the doorway, a cold, calculating smile on his thin lips.  
"I thought I might find you here... boss. Interrogating the prisoner, were you?" He leaned against the doorframe "I think Heidegger may be very interested to hear about this little incident... and Professor Hojo will certainly be most upset that you were 'interfering' with his specimen..."  
Reno glanced across at Aeris. She was sitting up on the bed, looking wide-eyed at Tseng, one hand holding the top of her dress together, which had been unbuttoned to the waist.  
Tseng's smirk widened as he followed Reno's gaze and looked at her "Admittedly you are a fine heifer - it does seem a shame to waste you on Hojo, but maybe he'll let me have you when he's finished."  
Aeris closed her eyes and turned away from him in disgust.  
Tseng smiled cruelly, pleased that his remarks had affected her. "Anyway, much as I'd love to stay and chat, I really should be going to tell Heidegger what his trusted employee does in his spare time. I think it's safe to say that you will no longer be the leader of the Turks after news of this little 'incident' reaches the right people. Your job, 'boss', is as good as mine." He walked out of the door, closing it as he went. He pushed the 'lock' button, smirking at them through the barred window. "Just to show my kind, compassionate nature, I won't tell anyone until the morning. That way you'll have all night to languish with your whore."  
Reno flipped him the finger and Tseng laughed "Honestly. You should be thanking me for delaying your fate and leaving you here with this sexy bitch." He waggled his fingers in a mocking wave "'Bye, 'boss'. Have a nice night!"  
Reno slammed his fist into the wall as Tseng left. "Dammit!" he shouted, then turned to Aeris, sucking his bruised knuckles. "Are you okay?"  
She nodded, still holding her dress together with one hand, still in shock. Reno reached out and placed a gentle hand on her forearm.  
"Look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken advantage of you like that."   
Aeris silenced him with a shake of her head, finding her voice. "It's fine. I-I need the company." She blushed "Please don't think of me as some kind of slut... I wouldn't let you - wouldn't ask this of you if I didn't ...need you."  
Reno looked at her, his head on one side "what are you saying?"  
Her blush deepened "Please don't take this the wrong way - I just need to be close to someone. I need to be comforted. I need someone..."  
Aeris raised her head and captivated Reno's eyes with her own.  
"I need someone to help me forget everything. Help me to put everything that's happened out of my mind. I can't take it any more..."  
Her words were cut off as Reno's lips pressed against hers in a sensuous kiss. Both of their minds were on other things as they made their joining, but both craved the delicious human contact of each other. They touched each other, kissed each other, explored each other long into the night and well into the morning, until both fell into exhausted sleep, entangled, both physically and mentally. Neither could have imagined the trouble their desperate coupling would eventually cause.

Sephiroth looked up as Barret burst into the room, swearing.  
"No £$&ing sign of him! Where the £$& can he be?"  
"I'm sure Biggs will turn up soon, Barret." he replied, cooly "And if he doesn't, we'll look for him after we've rescued Aeris. She's more important."  
He stared levelly at Barret, who nodded.  
"Okay. Fine. Normally your lack of concern for Biggs would annoy me, but I accept that you have far more important things on your mind"  
Sephiroth looked at him, eyebrows arched in surprise. Barret gave a wry smile at his expression and shook his head.  
"She's chosen you. I accept that. Although I may not like it, I accept it."  
His expression changed. "Just don't ever hurt her, or you'll find the business end of this gun aimed right at your silver girly head!" He waved his gunarm at Sephiroth, who turned away disdainfully.  
"If I ever do hurt her, you will have my absolute permission to injure, maim, or kill me. Is that bargain enough?"  
Before Barret could reply, there was a soft knock on the half-open door, and a pretty, dark-haired woman stepped into the room. Sephiroth smiled.  
"Nishki - hi!" she smiled back at him and sat down, and he continued "You know we're all very grateful to you three for letting us use your base temporarily - it's very generous."  
Nishki dismissed his thanks with a wave of her hand "It's nothing, really. We at BLIZZARD are happy to help AVALANCHE in any way. Oh! That reminds me!" she laughed "Sinneakh asked me to tell you that she's cooking, and food will be served in about an hour." She looked down at her watch "That was about forty-five minutes ago."  
Grinning, she leaned over and whispered conspiratorially in Sephiroth's ear "Jessie and Iraya are gossiping like fishwives out front, you should see them - I swear, they just talk-talk-talk whenever they're together - they never stop!"  
Her expression became more serious as she turned to Barret "Is there any sign of Biggs yet?"  
Barret shook his head. "No, not yet. We've decided to worry about rescuing Aeris first, and once we've got her back, then we'll try to find Biggs."  
"Good plan," Nishki agreed "It's far more important to save Aeris from Hojo - and quickly. You know, if you need a hand with your rescue mission at allI'd be perfectly happy to come with you and help out..." she sighed "Truth is, it's getting sort of dull in BLIZZARD at the moment - our hideout is secure, we haven't seen the Turks lately, and we haven't raided a reactor for months. I'm bored!"  
Barret leaned against the wall "Damn, girl! You don't take this seriously!"  
She grinned "Oh, come on, Barret! You know I do, really ..." Her expression turned grim "I have beliefs, just like you. I want to protect the planet, and I believe that the Shin-Ra need to be stopped. You seem to forget that Iraya, Sinneakh and myself have been fighting for the planet just as long as you and the AVALANCHE crew have. If I took all of this seriously, all of the time, I think the stress would kill me. I mean, look at Sinneakh! She thinks too much. She's forever thinking about Shin-Ra, the Turks, when we'll get caught, how we'll eventually die... You can see that it's all getting too much for her. She never laughs any more - she's becoming more and more withdrawn..." She looked straight at Barret "I mean, forgive me, but I don't want that to happen to me. I know that there's a very good chance that I'll die before I get much older - the Turks will catch us sooner or later. But I don't want to be dreading something that might not happen for years." She looked at her watch again "Dinner'll be ready. Iraya will kill me if I make you late for food!" Getting up and walking towards the door, she patted Sephiroth on the shoulder "Don't worry mate, we'll get your girlfriend back, good as new!"  
Sephiroht and Barret exchanged glances as they followed Nishki out of the room.   
Hours later, Sephiroth, Barret, Jessie, Wedge, Nishki, Iraya and Sinneakh sat discussing their plans. An unseen figure crouched on the roof of the delapidated church, listening intently to their conversation.

As dawn broke, the seven weary people broke the meeting to grab a few hours of sleep before they carried out their plans. In the halflight, Biggs hurried to the helicopter sitting in the open space just beyond the slums. Tseng turned to him as he heard him approach. "Well?"  
"I know their plans, and I know where they are" Biggs pointed. Tseng smirked and beckond to Rude and Elena and the four SOLDIERs they had brought with them.  
"Lead the way, Biggs. The BLIZZARD hideout is finally ours for the taking..."


	5. 

Chapter Five

Sephiroth's keen hearing registered a faint noise. Subconsciously, he focused on a sharp, regular tapping. He twitched into wakefulness, and a slightly louder sound, the sound of someone trying to open a door without making a noise, had him on his feet and rushing to wake Barret and Wedge in an instant. Barret woke instantly and soundlessly, and miraculously even Wedge had the presence of mind to stay silent.  
Sephiroth briefly explained the situation to them. "There's someone downstairs. I don't know who, but I'm going to assume the worst. I think the Turks are here."  
Barret swore under his breath, "But the girls are all down there!"  
Wedge whimpered. "Is Jess gonna be okay?"  
Sephiroth pressed his ear against the door, wincing when he heard a muffled scream. "No. She's not." He turned to the other two men. "Listen, I know this sounds callous, but we have to get out of here. We'll be no use to the girls if they catch us too."  
Barret nodded, grimly. "I can see where you're coming from, and once again, I don't like it, but I agree with you. We'll be more help to them if we're not caught." His eyes followed Sephiroth, who had opened the skylight and was climbing out of it. Sephiroth turned and silently offered him a hand. Wordlessly, Barret hoisted Wedge out through the window and then followed him with a speed that belied his bulk. They were out not a moment too soon, for Elena burst into the room mere seconds later. She looked disappointed for a moment, then turned and shouted to someone beyond the door "There's no-one here!" A bald man stepped into the room and glanced around.  
Rude strode over to one of the beds and placed his palm in the middle "This bed is still warm. They were here." His eyes strayed to the open window, a muggy breeze stirring the thin net curtains.  
"They escaped through the window." He swore. "Elena, go downstairs, take two of the SOLDIERs and search for the three escaped rebels. Go quickly - they won't have gone far yet!"  
Elena hurried off, and Rude narrowed his eyes and stared out of the window.  
"I know you can hear me," he said. Out on the roof, Sephiroth shifted in surprise. Rude continued.  
"Aeris is safe for the moment. Reno is looking after her, but if you don't rescue her soon, she'll be taken to Hojo's laboratory, and not even the Turks have any power there." A wry smile graced his lips, quickly fading as he spoke. "You may not believe me, but I want you to escape. I also want to warn you. For reasons that it is not my business to disclose, Reno will not be the leader of the Turks for much longer. Tseng will be taking over, and he is ambitious and cruel. Reno was content to let sleeping dogs lie - he had morals, and feelings, and in his own way he supported the rebel action against Shin-Ra. Tseng is ruthless. The only advice I can offer you is to tell you to watch your backs. Rescue Aeris, then get out of Midgar - go somewhere far away from here. I will do all I can to aid you whilst not blowing my cover." He turned to go; "Elena will not find you if you head across the rooftops towards Sector Six - she'll be looking for you in Sector Five for a while yet. The rubble created by the Seventh Plate should give you an access route up to the Upper Plates. Hurry to the Shin-Ra building and find Aeris. In the meantime, I will try and see that no harm comes to the four female prisoners taken here, but President Shin-Ra believes that a public execution of the rebels who supposedly blew up the Sector Seven support pillar will raise the morale of the Midgar populace. I cannot guarantee their safety. Make haste."  
Rude's footsteps walked out of the room and travelled downstairs. Barret swore.  
"Shit! Those bastards are gonna kill Jessie an' the BLIZZARD girls!"  
Sephiroth placed his hand on Barret's shoulder "But we have a greater chance of saving them if we leave now. You know that." Wedge remained silent, whimpering slightly as Barret hoisted him under his arm and followed Sephiroth stealthily over the rooftops towards Sector Six and the huge pile of debris that had once been Sector Seven.

Jessie struggled in Tseng's vicelike grip. She was pressed back against the wall, his hands pinning hers to the wall above her shoulders, his face inches from hers. He leered at her, planting a wet kiss on her cheek.  
"You're a pretty one, aren't you. How does a sexy bitch like yourself become involved with nasty rebel groups like AVALANCHE and BLIZZARD, hmmm?"  
Tseng ran his tongue from her collarbone to her jawbone, leaving a trail of saliva.  
Jessie turned her head away. "Maybe it's because we're trying to save the Planet from creeps like you."  
Tseng snorted. "I suppose you think that was a cutting comeback?" He tugged at her earlobe with his teeth, "I'm not impressed."  
He closed his mouth over hers, biting her lower lip viciously and pressing his body against hers to hold her still as she tried to struggle away from him.

Iraya looked the other way, frustrated tears welling up in her eyes. Nishki had been knocked unconscious by a blow to her jaw, and Sinneakh was lying bound on the floor, snarling at one of the guards and, Iraya noted with surprised amusement, trying to bite his ankles. Two of the SOLDIERS had gone with Elena and two were guarding the newly captured prisoners and trying to avoid staring at Tseng. Iraya dropped her head and rested it on her knees, her heart sinking slowly into a bleak pit of despair.

Rude paused in the doorway, surveying the scene. His eyes alighted on Tseng, who was rubbing himself against Jessie, evidently relishing her discomfort. Rude's frown deepened, and he strode over to them. The knowledge that Tseng was now his superior, and therefore above reprimand, annoyed him. The leader of the Turks was now a power, money and women hungry man, with no morals and slightly dubious tastes. Rude coughed.  
"Ahem. Sir, the three men have escaped. Elena has taken a team out to look for them, but I have little hope of her finding them now. I suggest we take the four captives back to base as soon as possible. President Shin-Ra's orders were quite precise on that matter..."  
Tseng had pulled away from Jessie, startled, when Rude had first spoken. Now he smoothed down his hair and suit and acted coolly, pretending nothing had happened.  
"Indeed. I believe that the other three captives are restrained?"   
The two SOLDIER guards nodded.  
"Good. Rude - " he threw Rude a length of thick rope "Tie her up." He ordered, motioning at Jessie. "Then bring her to the helicopter."  
Tseng and the two soldiers took a girl each, Sinneakh hurling insults as Tseng hoisted her over his shoulder, and traipsed out to the helicopter. Rude had a few brief moments alone with Jessie as he carefully bound her hands behind her back.  
"They're safe," he whispered, urgently. "They've gone to the Shin-Ra building to find Aeris, and to get you four out as well. There's a man called Reno in the cells. Trust him. He's on your side; he fights for the same ideals as you, whether he's realised it before or not." He frowned. "Which is mainly the reason that Tseng's in charge now..."  
Jessie turned her head to look at him in confusion. "Why do you care?"  
Rude smiled briefly at her. "Because. In the past few years, Reno has shown me that this planet is sacred, and that Shin-Ra is immoral. Not that I didn't know that before, of course, but somehow..."  
The sound of the helicopter starting made him jump. "Come on. Tseng will get impatient if we make him wait too long."  
He placed the muzzle of his gun between her shoulder blades. "The safety's on. Act like it isn't. Walk."  
Jessie gritted her teeth and walked out of the church with Rude close behind her, throwing a disgusted glare at Tseng as she got into the helicopter.

Reno swore for the thousandth time. Heidegger had come to Aeris's cell, with Reno still locked inside, about an hour ago. Two SOLDIERs accompanied him, and they had dragged Reno into the cell opposite. The same SOLDIERs had returned to Aeris's cell not long after, and with the use of a strong tranquilliser had carried her limp form out of her cell and down the corridor. Reno knew with dread certainty that they were taking her to Professor Hojo's laboratory. He had been cursing and kicking the wall ever since then, kicking, swearing and pacing in frustration. Now his feet hurt.  
A commotion in the corridor made him hurry to the door. Pressing his face up against the bars, he strained to see what was going on.  
Shouts from SOLDIER guards reached his ears.  
"Put that bitch in cell nine, down there!"  
"Okay... Fuck! She bit me!"  
"I'll chuck this one in cell twelve. And stop whimpering. I don't care if she bit you - you've got a bloody job to do!"  
Reno finally saw what part of the fuss was about. A girl - he vaguely recognised her from the Sector Seven Pillar assault - was being manhandled into the cell opposite him.  
Her hands were bound behind her back, and her chocolate brown hair was falling across her face, impeding her vision, but she was dealing the guards some fairly vicious kicks, and there was much swearing all round.  
Eventually one of the guards managed to shove her so she overbalanced, and the cell door was slammed swiftly shut before she could struggle to her knees. She raised her head and cursed roundly at the guards as they walked away down the corridor.  
"You f&$ing Shin-Ra b$£rds! I'll f&$ing kill you when I get out of this f&$ing hellhole!"

"Now, now. Pretty ladies like yourself shouldn't know such words."  
Jessie struggled to her feet; a task made ridiculously difficult by the fact that her hands were still bound behind her back, and glared at the man in the cell opposite hers. His glossy red hair fell to his waist, and was tied back loosely, leaving a few strands to hang free and frame his face. A long scar ran down his left cheek, but his countenance was otherwise perfect. His sapphire blue eyes shone with amusement, and the corners of his mouth were turned upward in a good-natured smirk. She frowned, turning away.  
"Who the hell are you? No, hang on, don't answer that; I know who you are. You're Reno, leader of the Turks."  
"Ex-leader of the Turks," he corrected her, "At your service, ma'am. May I ask who you are, and which rebel group you're from?"  
Jessie smiled sarcastically and spoke through gritted teeth.  
"I'm Jessie, of AVALANCHE. You may remember me from such cataclysmic disasters as THE TIME YOU BLEW UP THE GODDAMN SECTOR SEVEN SUPPORT PILLAR!"  
Reno opened his mouth to speak. Jessie cut him off.  
"Rude said I should trust you. Why? What can you do for me?"  
Reno held up a hand in surrender.  
"Okay. Firstly, I did what I did because it was my job, and secondly, I was far more useful to AVALANCHE and all the other Midgar rebel groups where I was, on the inside. I didn't agree with Shin-Ra, but I couldn't leave." He looked wistful, "Also, I had to make sure that Aeris was kept safe from Hojo."  
Jessie snorted "Oh, yeah! Fine job you did there, Mister 'I'm-so-special-I-help-people'!"  
Reno turned away. "...I know," he said, quietly, "I've failed her. I couldn't stop Sephiroth dying, and I couldn't prevent Aeris's capture. Now I'm locked up here and can't help her..."  
Jessie stared at him. "Hello? Time out! Did you say Sephiroth was dead?"  
"Yeah. He died in the pillar collapse.." Reno's eyes widened "But you were there too... so.." he shook his head, "Sephiroth's not dead? He survived?"  
Jessie nodded slowly. "Ye-e-e-s. Unless we all died, and I'm some sort of undead zombie thing now - which I doubt - he's definitely alive. Or he was when I last saw him." She added as an afterthought.  
Reno's blue eyes widened, "He's alive? Oh gods - Aeris thinks he's dead! She saw him..." he turned away. "Hoo, boy. Am I in trouble ..."

Jessie stared at Reno for a few more minutes, watching as he slumped on his bed and dropped his head into his hands.  
She tired quickly of this and went to sit on her own bed, looking about in vain for a sharp edge or corner on which to cut the rope tying her hands. She rolled her shoulders, wincing; her arms were really beginning to ache.

Aeris shivered. She had been drugged and taken out of her cell unconscious. She had woken up in a cylindrical glass prison, lying on a hard cold floor. The cylinder had obviously been designed purely for observation, as it contained nothing except her. She looked around herself and jumped, startled; Professor Hojo was on the other side of the wall closest to her, peering in at her, a strange look on his face. She shrank back, trying to get as far away from him as was possible in the cramped space. Aeris shut her eyes and brought her knees up to her chest, trying to make herself as small as she could. She could feel the Professor's eyes on her anyway, making her flesh crawl. She whimpered softly.  
"Leave me alone..." She muttered, "Go away and just let me be."  
If Hojo had heard her he gave no indication of it. He continued to stare at her, then make notes on his clipboard, and stare, and make notes, and stare, and methodically set out the plans he was making for the lovely Cetra that, after so many years of waiting, he finally had at his disposal.

Sephiroth stared up at the huge building. His hands and arms were cut and bruised, there were rips in his shirt and trousers and his feet were sore, but he had made it. The Shin-Ra building was there in front of him, and somewhere in there was Aeris... he could only hope that he was not too late.  
Barret staggered up behind him, Wedge still slung over one shoulder. "Damn... that was a nasty climb."  
He dropped Wedge, who bounced.  
"We're gonna bust right on in there, yeah?"  
Sephiroth shook his head. "Not if we can help it. If we can find another way in, we should take it. I don't want to cause a ruckus until we've found the girls."  
He motioned to the other two to stay put, and made his way carefully around the side of the gargantuan building, keeping to the shadows. He found it hard to believe his luck - a fire escape door had been smashed inward by vandals and now hung slightly open, swinging to and fro in the breeze.  
Hurrying back to Wedge and Barret, part of his mind expressed uneasiness at the ease with which their plans were succeeding, but he unconsciously dismissed the thoughts as mere pessimism.  
Barret saw Sephiroth beckon to him from the corner of the building and he moved towards him, motioning for Wedge to follow.

Jessie leant back against the wall, sighing. Reno had been sitting completely still for half an hour, and was either ignoring her, or her attempts to restart conversation were falling on deaf ears. He seemed to be thinking about something important, and she had eventually given up trying to engage his attention.  
She suddenly had an idea - she could try and speak with Iraya or one of the other BLIZZARD girls. Moving to the barred door of her cell, Jessie called Iraya's name softly. Iraya did not reply, but nor was there an answering shout from a guard. Jessie was encouraged by this, and called out slightly louder. She was rewarded by Iraya's surprised voice "Jessie? Jess! Are you okay?"   
Jessie smiled in relief. "Yes, I'm fine. Well, as fine as I could possibly be under the circumstances, anyway. How are you doing? Are Nishki and Sinneakh there?"  
"I am also as okay as could be expected. I can see Nishki; she's out cold. I don't know about Sinneakh; I've not heard a single sound from her. There's a good chance she's still unconscious as well, that SOLDIER hit her pretty hard with his sword hilt."  
Jessie stifled a guilty laugh "Well, she did bite him, after all."  
There was a snort of laughter from Iraya "True, true." Then, a more serious tone; "Jess, do you have any idea how we're going to get out of this one? These cells are damn strong, and short of a minor miracle, even if we did get out of the cells, there's no way we'd be able to escape the building."  
Jessie rested her forehead against the wall. "Then we're just going to have to hope for a miracle, aren't we."  
Both lapsed into silence.

Barret paused, panting. "How... many stairs ... have we climbed ... now?" Sephiroth turned and looked back thoughtfully "Lost count five or six flights ago." He gave a wide grin at the look on Barret's face "What did you expect? The building has seventy floors! The high-security levels are sixty and above, which leaves us with fifty-nine sets of stairs."  
Barret grumbled "... damn Shin-Ra and their stupid 'phallic symbol of power' damn building.... seeing how many floors they can stick on top of each other. Damn fools."  
Looking up, Sephiroth hid his expression from Barret "Ah, cheer up! You look like you've swallowed a frog. Come on. We'd better get climbing again."  
"It's alright for you, silver boy, you don't have to carry this deadweight." He motioned to Wedge, hoisted under his good arm "Besides, if eating a frog would get me to the top of this damn building, I'd do it..."

Aeris desperately stifled a yawn, her eyes watering. She was incredibly tired, but terror was keeping her awake; Hojo's constant presence kept her alert and aware of his every move. Each time he moved towards her she stiffened, afraid that at any minute his experiments on her would begin. A whimper escaped her lips; she knew there was no escape now - her friends in AVALANCHE were dead, Sephiroth was dead, Reno was in prison and any chance of her freedom had dwindled to almost nothing. She jumped at a noise from outside, looking up in alarm, but it was just Hojo setting down his clipboard. He glanced over at her, brushing his lank black hair out of his eyes, then walked out of the lab, switching the lights off as he went.  
Aeris's eyes were wide in the darkness as she tried to distinguish the frightening shapes that all of a sudden seemed to creep towards her in the gloom. Her body was rigid with terror, and she found herself wishing that Hojo would come back so that she would not be alone in the dark laboratory with whatever horrors could be lurking. Something in one of the adjacent cages shifted, and a hollow, chilling howl filled the air. Aeris hugged herself tighter, all traces of sleepiness fleeing from her body, and stared into the blackness all around her; a blackness that seemed to suddenly be filled with the rustlings, groanings and snufflings of the other specimens in the lab.

Barret, Wedge and Sephiroth emerged, relieved, from the fire door at the top of the stairs. Barret leaned against a wall, gasping, and dropped Wedge onto the floor. The small man sat on his round bottom where he had fallen, and pulled a face. Sephiroth looked warily about them, "I'm not sure about this, it's too quiet..."  
Barret shook his head "They're probably all on their tea breaks. Shin-Ra's never been particularly efficient. We should carry on and try to rescue the girls." He pried himself exhaustedly from the wall and grabbed Wedge's arm, dragging him to his feet. Sephiroth looked at him bemusedly as he came to stand in front of him. "Well, leather-boy, let's get going!"  
Sephiroth pointed across the hallway at a set of frosted glass elevator doors. "The elevator is really the only way to get to levels sixty and above. Shin-Ra's most important work goes on between the sixtieth and seventieth floors. Hojo's laboratory is there, as are the holding cells." Barret found new strength and, pulling Wedge along with him, sprinted across the wide hallway towards the elevators. Sephiroth glanced both ways down the corridor and shook his head "I still don't like this..."  
Once the three were safely in the lift, Sephiroth studied the control panel. He reached out a long finger and pressed the 'doors close' button, then turned to the other occupants of the lift "Which floor do you think we should choose? I'd say we should start at the sixtieth floor and work our way up, bearing in mind that President Shin-Ra's offices are on the sixty-ninth and seventieth floors."  
Barret's eyes lit up "We could finish off the President as well! Put an end to Shin-Ra once and for all!"  
Sephiroth frowned "That's a can of worms I'd rather not open at this point in time. Lets just rescue the girls, shall we? I have a nasty feeling that we're running out of time."

Tseng Turned to Rude and the group of heavily armed SOLDIERs who stood in wait on the sixtieth floor. "I hope you're all ready," he snapped, "Remember, Hojo doesn't want Sephiroth harmed, and we want the rebels intact for the execution tomorrow morning, so only use your weapons if it's strictly necessary." He looked up at the security monitor mounted on the wall, which was currently displaying the three rebels discussing their choice of floor. Sephiroth reached out and pressed a button, and Tseng braced himself. "Heads up boys, here they come..."

Sephiroth felt uneasiness stirring within him, even as his finger touched the button for the sixtieth floor. He heard Barret shifting restlessly behind him, and the feeling of tension grew strong in the confines of the elevator. The small metal box juddered to a standstill, and the doors slid open. "Ah, Gentlemen. We were expecting you." Tseng's smile was cold and sarcastic.  
Sephiroth let his breath out in a rush; closing his eyes briefly after taking in the sight of Tseng and the first class SOLDIERs behind him. His left hand drifted reflexively towards the hilt of the Masamune, whilst his right hand went to rest on Barret's gunarm, which the huge black man had raised to point at Tseng, and slowly pushed it back down "Don't, Barret. We don't have a chance, and I refuse to die without seeing Aeris again."  
A smirk graced Tseng's thin lips "Why, it's funny you should mention your precious whore..." Sephiroth's eyes narrowed in anger, and he took half a step forward, halted by the cold muzzle of Tseng's gun, which pressed threateningly against his temple. "You might be interested to know that she--"  
"Sir, the President's orders were to take the rebels to the holding cells and take Sephiroth to Professor Hojo's laboratory immediately, Sir."  
Tseng glared at Rude, but turned to the SOLDIERs behind them.  
"Alright, men. Escort these two;" and here he dragged Wedge out of the elevator, with Barret following dejectedly behind him, "To the cells. Sephiroth, you're coming with me. Professor Hojo was adamant that he wanted to see you as soon as possible." Barret's questioning eyes met Sephiroth's, but the silver-haired man's face remained impassive.  
Tseng pushed Sephiroth back into the lift, and motioned for Rude to follow. As Rude stepped into the elevator, the doors slid shut behind him and Tseng hit the button for the sixty-seventh floor. Both Turks kept their guns pointed directly at Sephiroth's head as the lift moved steadily upwards.  
Sephiroth's mind was awhirl as the elevator rose. He was going to be sent back to the lab... how was he going to escape this time? More importantly, how was he going to save Aeris? He would not be able to rescue her if he was in the same predicament as she... He frowned, wondering if she was still okay. He had let her down. He had promised himself that he would rescue her, and then everything would be fine, but he had failed her, and now they were both at Hojo's mercy. Sephiroth hung his head; how humiliating this all was...

Jessie was sitting on her hard cot bed, staring down into her lap. Her hands were still bound behind her, and by now her shoulders were aching abominably. There was the sound of a door sliding open, a scuffle, then a loud clang, indicating that one of the heavy cell doors had been slammed shut, and Jessie looked up eagerly, hoping for some excitement, or at least something to relieve the tedium. What she heard, however, shocked her immensely.  
"F£$&ing Shin-Ra goons - you don't care what you're doing to this planet! You don't think it concerns you! Well f£$& you! You'll all see soon enough!"  
Jessie jumped off her bed, moving cautiously to the door of her cell. "Barret?"  
What she heard next made her wince. "Jeeeessssssiie?" the voice was unmistakably Wedge's. Jessie spoke from between clenched teeth "Wedge. How lovely to see you."  
Barret's voice was close; maybe two or three cells away. "Jess? Is that you?"  
"Yes Barret. Of course it's me! What are you doing here?"  
"Not much, now. We were comin' to rescue you, Aeris and BLIZZARD, but the Turks ambushed us. Shoulda seen it comin', really - it was far too quiet everywhere." There came the distinctive sound of a heavy metal gun-fist hitting the wall in frustration "Can't believe we got this far just to end up locked in here. Still," his voice brightened "At least we found you girls!"  
Jessie's eyebrows creased into a frown "Where's Sephiroth? He was with you, wasn't he?"  
"They took 'im someplace else. Don't know where. Tseng - bastard - said something about Hojo wantin' to see him as soon as possible, but I don't know anythin' more 'bout that."  
Jessie sighed, "So our entire rescue team is now incarcerated along with us." She let a brief, slightly hysterical laugh pass her lips "We're all fucking doomed!"  
"It's that damn bloody Sephiroth-pretty-boy. I bet he's the bastard who shipped us. Always knew the git was up to no good - infiltratin' AVALANCHE and BLIZZARD headquarters, then seducin' Aeris, then leadin' us all straight into the hands of Shin-Ra. Bastard."  
"Ah. There, my friend, you are completely, unequivocally, wrong." The voice came from the far end of the prison corridor, and both Jessie and Barret jumped, surprised. Jessie was the first to get her voice back.  
"Biggs?"

Sephiroth stepped into the lab, Tseng's gun pressed persuasively between his shoulder blades. The first thing that hit him was the stench of the place; no amount of disinfectant could mask the stink of Hojo's specimens, the smell of chemicals that stuck at the back of his throat, and underlying everything else, the pervading smell of blood. To Sephiroth, the smell of the lab was the very embodiment of fear; associated since early childhood with pain and suffering. He shuddered, his posture unconsciously becoming defensive as his gaze shifted around the laboratory, taking in the specimen tanks and cages, the shelves of chemicals, rows of vicious-looking surgical implements, and the two operating tables at the far end of the lab, fitted with tough reinforced leather straps. Nothing much had changed, he reflected with distaste. The specimens were different, but everything else was in pretty much the same place it had always been.  
"Stop."  
Tseng's voice barked from behind him. Sephiroth stopped obediently, the gun at his back helping to convince him that disobedience was a bad idea. "Hojo? I've brought him for you."

There was a shuffling noise to one side of them, and Sephiroth turned to face it. He could just about distinguish Hojo leaning over something pink at his feet. Wait - pink? Sephiroth frowned, was that Aeris?  
"Have you. Thank you, Tseng. You may go."  
Tseng opened his mouth to protest, but thought better of it and strode out, throwing a self-satisfied smirk at Sephiroth as he went. Rude followed him silently.  
Hojo turned around and stared critically at Sephiroth. "You set my research back quite drastically by disappearing, you know."  
Sephiroth snorted, "I'm supposed to care?"  
Hojo shrugged, "It just means I'll have to work twice as fast now, that's all. Especially since I've received my latest specimen - there's such a wealth of knowledge to be learnt from the Ancient!"  
"Ancient - you mean Aeris?" Sephiroth's brow creased into a frown and he tried to peer around Hojo.  
"Oh, is that her name? I wouldn't know." Hojo walked out of the specimen tank, shutting the door behind him. Sephiroth's eyes widened when he saw the figure huddled at the far side. Her long pink dress was ripped at the bottom and missing some buttons, her auburn hair was loose and fell in strands around her and her face was hidden, her forehead resting on her bent knees, which were drawn up to her chest, but it was unmistakably her. Sephiroth lunged towards the specimen tank, pressing his palms against the glass "Aeris!"  
His voice carried through the ventilation grille, and Aeris's head snapped up, her face pale and tear-stained.  
"Seph?" she looked haunted "What...? No... It's not you. You're dead."  
Dead? No, my love, I assure you I'm very much alive!" He almost felt like laughing "You thought I was dead?"  
"The pillar collapsed - you were in it - I didn't see you escape, so I thought... Oh Gods, Seph!" she scrambled to her feet, pressing her palms to his on the other side of the glass. "Don't ever leave me alone again..."  
Hojo had been watching the exchange with interest and some amusement. "It's very unlikely that he will be leaving you ever again, seeing as you are now both my greatest, most treasured specimens."  
Sephiroth rested his forehead against the glass "I'm so sorry, Aeris."  
Hojo smiled, his thin lips twisting into an expression of mockery. "I am so very glad that the two of you get on so well together. It will make the secondary stages of my experiment so much easier."  
Aeris looked terrified "Secondary stages?"  
"Yes, my dear. Once I have completed some preliminary testing, I am going to breed you two, to create stronger specimens, with both Ancient heritage and JENOVA enhanced cells."  
Sephiroth's eyes narrowed as he turned around, and he had taken a step forward to confront Hojo, when a sigh and a thud from inside the specimen tank behind him caused him to turn back to Aeris. She had fainted.  
Hojo grabbed his arm, plunging a hypodermic needle into a vein and emptying the contents into his bloodstream before he could pull away. Sephiroth felt woozy almost immediately, and could put up only a weak protest as Hojo guided him into the empty specimen tank next to Aeris's. Sephiroth staggered in and swayed for a few moments, anger trying to force its way into his clouded brain. His back hit the glass wall, and he slid down it, the drug sending him into unconsciousness before he hit the floor.

Biggs signalled with his hand and the four SOLDIERs flanking him moved forwards. Within moments, the three captive AVALANCHE members were out of their cells and restrained, one soldier each holding Wedge and Jessie, and two holding onto Barret; one on each arm. Biggs led them down the corridor and into a small room on the left. The SOLDIERs tied the three securely to a metal bench that ran along the back wall of the room. Jessie stared, wide-eyed, at Biggs. "It was you? All this time, you betrayed us?"  
Biggs smiled broadly at her "Believe it, lover. You were sweet, but power is sweeter!"  
Barret swore "You $$hole! You better be bloody glad I can't get to you right now! I'd rip your fing balls off! All this time I thought it was that silver-haired pretty boy, and it was you!"  
Biggs smirked at Barret "I must say, it amused me - you were accusing Sephiroth of working for the Shin-Ra, continuously mistrusting and insulting him, when all the time it was me who was spying on you all, and Sephiroth was as much on the run from Shin-Ra as Aeris was. Isn't that funny?"  
Jessie leaned forward, pulling on the ropes binding her "I don't understand how you could do this, Biggs... After everything we fought for together, all the plans we made for the future of AVALANCHE... how could you not have meant any of that?"  
Biggs waved a hand dismissively "Oh, at the beginning I believed in all that 'Save Planet' crap, I started out meaning everything I said, everything AVALANCHE did. Eventually, I realised that it was all bullshit. Shin-Ra is the future - mako energy is the future. I've made more money working for Shin-Ra than I ever made with you rebels. Oh, it was nice enough - you were nice enough in bed, lover, but my future is with Shin-Ra now, not with you and your eco-warrior morals."  
"I believe that you should discuss your future with this nice, shiny pistol." Tseng's voice was as cold as the gun muzzle that pressed against Wedge's temple "Oh, and I'd rethink your position, if I were you. You led us to AVALANCHE, and you led us to BLIZZARD. That made you useful. There's no one left for you to lead us to. That means that your usefulness has run out. You've also proved to us that you're untrustworthy - Ghastly, isn't it?" He smiled cruelly at Biggs as he pulled the trigger.  
Blood spattered over the three AVALANCHE members, and Jessie screamed as Biggs fell to the floor, a bullet embedded in his brain. "You bastard!" she struggled harder against her bonds "You utter bastard! How could you?"  
Tseng silenced her by placing the muzzle of the gun to her forehead. Once he was certain that she had got the point, he removed the gun and took her chin in his hand, lifting her face towards him. He leaned closer to her, tightening his grip when she tried to pull away. "Power corrupts, pretty one." Tseng indicated Biggs's body, blood seeping out of his shattered skull. "Besides, didn't he spurn you? Betray your confidence? After all you had together... You should be glad I got rid of that unfaithful bastard for you." He gripped her chin tighter, and his lips clamped down over Jessie's, his tongue forcing its way into her mouth, tasting her and ignoring her muffled protests and struggles. He broke away, smiling. "Wouldn't you prefer to come and live with me, pretty one? I can probably prevent your execution if you promise to stay with me - be my slave. What do you say, hmmm?"  
Jessie spat in his eye.  
Tseng leapt back, angrily wiping his stinging eye, and looking around him quickly to determine whether any of the SOLDIERs had seen this embarrassing event. Luckily, they all appeared to still be outside, and he barked orders for them to come in and take the prisoners back to the holding cells. As Jessie was led past him, he snarled at her. "I'll delay your execution alright - you can go last, and watch all the rest of your friends die. We'll kill that blonde BLIZZARD girl first, shall we? Iraya, isn't that her name?"  
Jessie did not even look at him, holding her chin in the air. Only when she was back in her cell, the door locked and the SOLDIERs gone, did she burst into tears.  
Barret sat wearily on his bed, staring down at his blood-specked arms and listening to Jessie's weeping. He called out, raising his voice "Jess? Is there anything I can do to help?"  
No reply was forthcoming, and Barret rested his head in his hands and sighed. He could see no way out of this one - it really was the end.


	6. 

Chapter Six

Sephiroth groggily opened his eyes, snapping wide-awake at the sight that greeted him. He sat up quickly, ignoring the spinning this action caused in his head.  
"Cloud." He snarled, eyes never leaving the figure of the blonde-haired man in front of him. Cloud, his most hated and feared enemy, was standing inside the specimen tank that contained Aeris. She was still slumped on the floor, presumably still unconscious, and Cloud was leaning over her motionless body, reaching out a hand to touch her.  
Sephiroth bristled, images from his dream came flashing back to him all too vividly "Get away from her!" he yelled, struggling to his feet and slamming his fists against the glass wall of his own tank "You keep your hands off her, you bastard!"  
Cloud looked up at him. Recognition passed across his face, followed by some unidentifiable expression. This was quickly covered by a smirk. "Ah. The little SOLDIER freak." A frown flickered briefly across his features. "I thought I had killed you? Still, never mind."  
He indicated Aeris with a wave of his hand "Is this yours? You were getting quite worked up about her. Shall we see?" He knelt beside her, reaching out a hand and gripping her chin, tilting her face towards him. Running the fingers of his other hand across her slightly parted lips, Cloud looked up to observe Sephiroth's face. He was as amused as he was shocked by the level of hostility in the younger man's eyes. Sephiroth's glare was murderous, his mouth was set in a thin, straight line, and his hands were clenched so tightly that his nails were digging little pits in his palms.  
Cloud's smirk grew more malicious, and he moved his left hand to the back of Aeris's neck, lifting her into a half sitting position. He buried his other hand in her hair, making sure his arm was out of the way so that Sephiroth had a clear view, and pressed his lips to hers, parting them with his tongue and tasting her. She was limp and unresponsive in her unconscious state, but she was warm, and the faint scent of flowers wafted from her pure skin. Cloud found himself becoming more caught up in the sensation of her, moving to straddle her. What had originally been a purely vindictive action, designed to anger and frustrate his old nemesis, had become an action of lust – he wanted this woman, was drawn to her for some reason. A small voice in his head called for him to defile her, he hungered to feel more of her pale, flawless skin... his hand untangled itself from her hair and moved to the top of her pink cotton dress, fumbling the first button out of its hole and moving to the second, then the third, partially exposing the creamy skin of her breasts.  
The sound of shattering glass was the last thing he expected to hear, and looking up in confusion, he saw with horror that the specimen tank that had once contained Sephiroth was lying in pieces around the laboratory, scattered as if by an explosion. Sephiroth himself was standing at the entrance to Aeris's holding cell, a dangerous look on his face. He took a step forwards "Get away from her."  
Cloud dropped Aeris hastily, standing and backing up. Sephiroth continued to advance. Cloud masked his actual fear, put on an expression of mock terror and leered at his adversary "Oh, please, spare me!"  
Sephiroth snorted at his opponent's pathetic display and stopped, his eyes flickering briefly to Aeris's limp body, checking her for any superficial damage. There seemed to be none, and he raised his gaze once again to Cloud "I killed you, five years ago. I know I did. What are you doing here, still alive?"  
"Mother saved me. The power of JENOVA running in my veins kept me alive, even now makes me almost invincible. The lifestream carried me with it to the Northern Crater where I have been recovering for many years. If you really thought you had managed to kill me, weakling, then I am sad to inform you that you have failed."  
Sephiroth took another step towards Cloud, malice clear in his eyes. "A mistake I intend to remedy."  
"Not today, weakling. Not today..." Cloud smiled horribly and, in front of Sephiroth's shocked eyes, slowly vanished from sight.  
Sephiroth stood still in stunned surprise for a few seconds, then shook himself into action as a small explosion on another floor shook dust and plaster down from the ceiling. He knelt down next to Aeris and scooped her still-unconscious body into his strong arms, letting her hair fall away from her face. Only when he looked up, did he notice the carnage around him. Several lab assistants lay in red pools of their own blood, their white coats soaking up the thick reddish-brown liquid, huge jagged gashes ripped across their bodies. Severed human limbs lay oozing where they had landed after they had been hacked randomly from their owners' corpses. The specimen tanks to either side had been smashed open, their slimy occupants gone, presumably wandering free about the building, finishing off the people that Cloud had missed the first time.  
As Sephiroth surveyed the carnage around them in the lab, his eyes fell on his sword, unsheathed, still lying where Hojo had left it unceremoniously in a corner. Evidently his intention had been to send it to the armoury later on, but thanks to Cloud's intervention, it had never happened. He laid Aeris down in a relatively clean spot, free of blood and gore, and walked across to pick it up.  
"Why did Cloud do this?" Sephiroth wondered as he stepped over yet another broken, bloody body. "Surely he didn't do all this just to show me that I hadn't killed him after all?"  
Picking up the Masamune, he noticed with disgust that there were spots of blood on the blade. He wiped it clean on the tattered edge of his shirt and smiled with satisfaction at its highly polished surface.  
A flash of red-orange reflected in the blade caught his attention, and Sephiroth turned slowly back to Aeris, freezing in horror. A huge red creature, presumably one of Hojo's escaped specimens, was sniffing her, pawing at her arm and leaning over her.  
Sephiroth ran forward, "Get away from her!" The red beast jumped back in alarm and turned around, one eye staring at Sephiroth, the other scarred shut. Regaining its composure, and looking at Sephiroth haughtily, the creature padded slowly away.  
He was about to follow it, sword drawn, when another explosion, stronger this time, shook the lab. Grimacing as his foot accidentally landed in a puddle of blood, Sephiroth picked up Aeris awkwardly, trying to carry her in a way that allowed him to use his sword as well.  
Eventually, he managed to sling Aeris over his shoulder, allowing him limited use of the Masamune – enough for minimal defence against any hostile creatures they might encounter.  
Sephiroth left the lab, in search of the rest of AVALANCHE and the three girls from BLIZZARD. He knew that the holding cells were on the same floor as Hojo's laboratory, and assumed that the prisoners were being kept there. The bloodshed in the corridors was, if anything, worse than it had been in the lab, and Sephiroth's boots were soon slick with blood.  
He reached the prison wing, not a moment too soon, for the stench of drying blood and viscera were making him retch, and the shadows were taking on a menacing air; every niche and doorway seemed to be filled with the dead and dismembered. At this very moment in time, all he wanted was some company.  
The corridor was dark; the fluorescent light strips that spanned the ceiling were all smashed, and the emergency generator still had not started up. A sudden, horrible thought crossed his mind; he had been assuming all along that his friends were still alive – what if they were dead? Cloud had slaughtered every other person in the building without a thought, why should he have spared AVALANCHE?  
Sephiroth stood, frozen, in the middle of the corridor. He could not bring himself to move towards any of the cells, fearful of what hideous sights of mutilation they may hold. His breath was ragged, and his hold on Aeris tightened.  
... There was a rustle from one of the cells, and a smooth, vaguely familiar male voice called out;  
"Hey, whoever you are, I know you're out there! What the hell's happened to the lights?"  
His fears effectively dispelled, Sephiroth took a step forward, not bothering to answer the man's question. "Jessie? Barret?"  
"- Seph?" Jessie's choked voice came from somewhere to his right, and he heard her walk unsteadily towards his vague direction. "Seph, are you here to save us?"  
He laughed, an empty, hollow sound that echoed unpleasantly down the pitch-black corridor "I suppose you could say that, yes. Although it's not entirely my own doing..."  
"What do you mean?" Jessie was puzzled "How did you -" At that moment, the emergency generator kicked in, and the back-up lighting system flickered on, filling the prison corridor with a dim, uneven light.  
This enabled Sephiroth to see what had happened to the three SOLDIERs who had been guarding the cells. A strangled choking, retching noise from his right let him know that Jessie had seen it too. He heard the man who had spoken to him before gasp in shock, and Sephiroth answered the unvoiced question. "... It wasn't me."  
He walked slowly along the blood-spattered corridor until he reached the next pair of cells. Upon finding them empty, he turned back to Jessie, who he could dimly see now in the halflight. "Are the others here? Barret, and BLIZZARD, and Biggs and Wedge?"  
"Barret's here somewhere - Iraya, Nishki and Sinneakh, too. Wedge is, unfortunately, here as well."  
Jessie's tone turned bitter "Biggs... is not."  
"The bastard. He... he turned traitor." Barret's gruff voice was a lot further along the corridor "He sided with the Shin-Ra, and then Tseng ... blew his brains out..."  
Sephiroth heard Jessie let out a quiet half sob, and he turned to give her a sympathetic look. For the first time, he noticed the dark spatters of blood on her skin and clothing. She looked back at him defiantly, "I'm fine."  
Although Sephiroth knew that she was anything but fine, he nodded his understanding, and turned to face the man in the cell opposite. His eyes widened "Reno? What are you doing here?"  
The ex-Turk's gaze was fixed on the girl that Sephiroth held in his arms, and his tone was distant as he replied.  
"I was ... discharged. Tseng's been after my job for years, and he finally got the opportunity he's been waiting for." He inclined his head, nodding towards Aeris. "Is she alright?"  
Sephiroth glanced down at Aeris's pale face "I think so. I don't think Hojo managed to do anything to her." A frown flickered across his brow "Why do you care?"  
Reno swallowed guiltily "Aeris and I are ... old friends. I was told to capture her and bring her to Hojo years ago, but I could never quite bring myself to do it. I kept her away from Shin-Ra for all of five years, until the time came when I couldn't protect her anymore..."  
Sephiroth nodded to Reno. "You kept her safe for that long, and for that I am eternally grateful. If you are no longer with the Shin-Ra, would you care to join us? You could be of much help to us."  
After a long pause, Reno agreed reluctantly. "I suppose there isn't much else for me to do. If it means I'll get the chance to kick the shit out of that bastard Tseng at some point, I'll join you." 'Probably not the best decision I've ever made in my life,' he added silently to himself, 'But really, it's not like I've got much choice. As long as Sephiroth doesn't find out about Aeris and me …'   
The sound of the silver-haired man's voice jolted him back to reality.  
"Welcome to the team, then. But bear in mind that I'll be keeping my eye on you – gratitude or not, you're still ex-Shin-Ra."  
"I understand perfectly." Reno held up a hand "I, personally, wouldn't trust myself as far as I could throw me ... I think." He stopped speaking, and Sephiroth flashed him a brief grin before turning away.  
Sephiroth approached Barret's cell, his boots sticking unpleasantly to the congealing blood on the floor. His foot knocked against something solid, and he looked down apprehensively. With a horror that pooled in the pit of his stomach and made him want to retch, he saw that the object was one of the guards' severed hands, the keycard for the cell doors clenched tightly in its dead grasp. "Oh, typical!" he hissed "Why me?"  
Sheathing the Masamune and shifting Aeris's weight, Sephiroth managed to free up his left hand. Crouching carefully down, he balanced Aeris on his right knee and stretched out his free hand, grimacing when his fingers made contact with the blood-slick surface of the keycard. Tugging steadily, he managed to pull it out from between the hand's stiff, dead fingers.  
Straightening slowly, Sephiroth forced himself not to think about the card, the congealing blood causing it to stick revoltingly to his fingers. Keeping his hand outstretched, with the majority of Aeris's weight on his right leaving only the weight of her legs draped across his left arm, he walked carefully towards Barret's cell.  
Running the sticky card through the swipe mechanism, Sephiroth heard the satisfying beep which indicated that the card had been accepted, even with its grisly coating. Barret pushed the cell door, and it swung silently open on its hinges.  
"Turn around and I'll cut your – uh – wrists free…" Sephiroth offered. Barret turned, and the swordsman skilfully unsheathed the Masamune, cutting through the black man's bonds in a swift downward slicing motion.  
"Do you want me to take care of Aeris for you while you free the others?" Barret asked as soon as his arms were free of their restraints, and Sephiroth wordlessly handed her to him.  
Iraya was freed next, and she stared blankly at the dead bodies as Sephiroth freed her wrists. Nishki and Sinneakh had much the same reaction, the shock of the sight that greeted them rendering them both speechless, and all three walked silently back towards Barret.  
Even Wedge was subdued as his cell was opened, and he followed Sephiroth so closely that he stepped on his heels several times.  
Sephiroth let Jessie out, then turned to face Reno's cell.  
"Just remember, if you play us false you will meet with the wrong end of Masamune."  
Reno forced a grin which, as is the way of things, looked more like a grimace "I'll be good."

The mismatched group left the cell block, retrieving their weapons from the conveniently placed store room at the end of the corridor and heading speedily towards an exit.  
As they rounded a corner, they found themselves staring at a large band of terrified SOLDIER cadets, with their commander out in front of them. He whirled around to face AVALANCHE.  
"Thank the gods! People who aren't dead! What's going on here? Hang on …" There was a pregnant silence as the commander re-appraised the small group of people in front of him "… Who are you?"  
AVALANCHE did not feel the need to grace him with a reply. As one, they turned and ran in the opposite direction, feet slipping on the blood-slick floor.

The commander whipped round, shouting to his cadets "Get them you idiots! If they escape I'll arrest you lot instead!"  
He pulled the trigger of his gun impulsively, pointing it randomly in the direction of the fleeing rebels. Jessie heard the gunshot, and looked back in alarm as Nishki cried out. Without thinking, Jessie was there to catch Nishki as she fell "Barret!" she called, "Help me here, Barret, please!"  
Without breaking his stride, Barret turned around and scooped Nishki up into his arms. Levelling his gun arm at the commander, Barret fired, then turned immediately and continued to run, not looking to see if his retaliation shot had hit its mark. The commander collapsed backwards, blood pumping from a gaping bullet wound in his chest. The SOLDIER cadets under his command immediately clustered around him in a most unprofessional manner and the commander, a hand pressed to his bloody chest, rasped "Follow them you incompetent idiots! You, Caro, find me a restore materia. The rest of you, follow those damn terrorists!"   
He coughed, hissing in pain, and raised his head to watch as his cadets ran after the rebels. "Makes me wonder if you've learnt anything from me at all..."

All eleven of the remaining SOLDIER cadets were ambushed by a pack of mutated slavering hedgehog pies within minutes of leaving their commander. True to form, they panicked. None survived.

AVALANCHE dashed through the corridors of the crumbling Shin-Ra building. Sephiroth was in the lead with Aeris, still unconscious, cradled in his arms. Fires were burning at intervals along their path, and there was blood splattered liberally on the walls. Sinneakh was running almost level with him, her hand resting warily on her dagger's hilt, constantly scanning for SOLDIER members or escaped laboratory specimens that they could stumble across. Her eyes lingered for a moment on a particularly large spatter of blood, following its trail down the wall. The bile rose in her throat as she looked at the body slumped on the floor beneath the blood smear. Its head had been sliced from its neck, and entrails were hanging from a gaping abdominal wound. Sinneakh averted her eyes quickly. "Cloud did a thorough job here, didn't he."  
Sephiroth snorted "Much as I hate him, it's lucky for us he did. Otherwise, Barret, Wedge and Reno would still be in the cells, Aeris and I would be Hojo's specimens, and you BLIZZARD girls would be due to die in the morning."  
"Yeah, you don't need to remind me. Ah! Watch out!" Sinneakh lunged at a huge beast that was lumbering towards them, her dagger glancing off its tough hide. "What in hell did Hojo keep in his damned laboratory? I've never seen monsters like these before!"  
Sephiroth leapt agilely to the side, shifting his grip on Aeris so that her weight was better distributed. "He was crossbreeding things continuously. What makes the creatures from his lab dangerous is the fact that they're all partially human. They have humanoid intelligence and cunning, but no morals or inhibitions, which-" He ducked swiftly as the creature's armoured claw swung towards him.  
The others caught up to them at that moment, and the lab monster went into a frenzy; its claws lashed out fiercely, and it snapped its teeth, lunging at Iraya. She leapt out of the way just in time, and the monster hit the wall beyond. Again, the monster slashed at Sephiroth, shrieking.  
Belatedly, Sephiroth realized it was aiming for his precious burden, and the creature's claws ripped through Aeris's dress, scoring the skin underneath before Sephiroth snatched her out of its reach, crying out in anger. With Aeris in his arms, he was unable to effectively use his sword, so was consigned to merely keeping out of range of the monster's attacks. Sinneakh, Reno and Iraya's weapons seemed to be ineffective, glancing off the creature's tough hide, and Barret and Jessie were standing together further back, discussing something. Wedge was in a corner, whimpering. Where was Nishki? Sephiroth frowned. What was Barret holding in his arms? There was something very wrong here...  
A flash of red caught his eye and he looked up in alarm, recognising the red beast that had attacked Aeris in the lab. He groaned; this was all they needed. To his surprise, the beast made no move to attack them, facing instead towards the humanoid monster and baring its teeth. A pillar of flame engulfed the monster, which shrieked in pain as the fire melted its hard carapace.  
"I believe you will find that your weapons will be considerably more effective now," the beast said, demonstrating his words by slashing at the monster with his claws. Reno sent two bullets flying towards the creature, and Iraya sliced one of its huge clawed hands with her glaive, parting it almost completely from the arm.  
Within minutes, the monster was a twitching heap on the ground. The red beast's tail flicked back and forth as he surveyed the motley group. Sephiroth took up a defensive stance as the beast's eyes fell on Aeris, then relaxed as his gaze shifted away again. There was a tiny thought nagging in his brain, but he was unable to pinpoint exactly what it was. Iraya voiced his thought. "Hang on... you can talk. What kind of monster are you?"  
"I am not a monster, madam!" the red beast's speech was elegant, but its tone was indignant, "I happen to be of a very distinguished lineage! My family are scholars, and have been the protectors of Cosmo Canyon for many hundreds of years!"  
Iraya had opened her mouth to reply when there was an ominous scrabbling noise from a shadowy doorway nearby. One of the red beast's ears twitched impatiently, "Proper introductions may come later, when we are out of danger. For now, you may call me Red XIII."  
The motley group continued swiftly on down the corridor, miraculously meeting very few monsters or SOLDIERs as they headed for the entrance lobby. Red's claws and teeth made short work of those they did meet, usually some rogue defence robot or small escaped lab specimen.  
"The stairs are over that way." Reno called, motioning to the left, "We're on the fifth floor now, so those main staircases there should take us straight into the entrance lobby."  
As they sped down the stairs, another series of explosions racked the building, sending rubble raining down on them. The lobby came into view and the group breathed a unanimous sigh of relief - just that little way to go and they were free...  
Another quake shook the building, and they all ran faster. Sephiroth fought rising panic as the tremors in the building became stronger – some primal instinct was screaming at him to get out of the lobby, quickly. A creak from the roof solidified his fears "Run!" he shouted "The ceiling's going to fall! Bloody get out of here!"  
They were all sprinting now, putting on a final extreme burst of speed – even Wedge, whose short legs had never carried him so fast in his entire life – heading for the large main entrance.  
AVALANCHE exploded from the front doors and into the heady night air. Gasping, they staggered away from the building as it shuddered in the throes of yet another series of explosions. There was a tremendous crash and a rush of hot air as the ceiling of the first floor smashed down into the lobby. The group were knocked over by the force of the explosion, and then everything was silent, save for the quiet patter of the descending dust cloud.

Sephiroth raised himself onto one arm. He had fallen on top of Aeris, and he checked her over quickly to make sure she was okay. He frowned as he saw the long tear in her dress where the humanoid monster had slashed at her. He parted the torn sides and examined the cut skin underneath. The cuts were small, mere scratches, and there would be no scarring, but Sephiroth felt guilty as he ran his fingers over them. Aeris had been in his care, unable to defend herself, and he had put her in harm's way... absentmindedly, he ran his fingers down to the smooth unmarred skin of her hip, relishing the feel of her soft, warm flesh under his fingertips. He suddenly realised what he was doing and withdrew his hand swiftly. A low moan escaped her lips and he leaned over her, his hand moving to cup the side of her face "Aeris?" he said her name softly "Aeris, can you hear me?"  
"Hmmm? Seph?" her eyes flickered open and focused blurrily on his face "Oh, Seph... you're alive..."  
"Yes. I'm alive. I couldn't die and leave you in the hands of Shin-Ra, now could I?" he caught her hand in his and held it to his face "Are you okay, Aeris? What did Hojo do to you to make you pass out?"  
Groggily, she sat up "Nothing, I think. I'm pretty sure it was a combination of hunger, thirst, lack of sleep, fear and shock." She shook her head, trying to clear it, then rested her forehead in her hand, closing her eyes. Sephiroth squeezed the hand he still held "I'm sorry I didn't get there sooner. I had planned to rescue you as your 'knight in shining armour', but instead I make my grand entrance as 'your fellow test subject'. Not quite what I had in mind." Aeris smiled "Yeah, well it did come as a bit of a surprise. I had no idea that you were just as much a fugitive as me."  
"Hojo used me as his guinea pig in some of his more 'extreme' mako experiments," Sephiroth shuddered, remembering the painful treatments he had undergone at Hojo's hands "Let's just say, he wasn't too happy to find that his 'greatest experiment' had gone AWOL. I've been fighting off the SOLDIERs that he's sent to track me down ever since, that's why I was injured so badly when we first met. He never sent the Turks after me, though – he really did want to get his dirty hands on you, didn't he?"  
Aeris looked at him, biting her lip. "He would have gotten his hands on me a lot sooner if Reno hadn't helped me… I owe him a lot."  
Sephiroth held out a hand to her "See if you can stand up."  
Aeris took his hand, and pulled herself to her feet. Her legs felt like jelly, and she sagged against him. Sephiroth wrapped his arms around her quickly, stopping her from falling. He swallowed hard, feeling the entire length of her body pressed against him through their clothes. Her face was so close to his... he gave in and claimed her lips for his own, keeping one arm wrapped firmly around her waist to support her, and sliding his free hand to the back of her head. She froze, but briefly, as the feel of his lips on hers made her head spin. She kissed him back with a fervour that betrayed the desperation she had felt when she thought she had lost him. Lost in each other, they were pulled violently back to reality by Iraya's shouts. As they turned, Aeris gasped, raising a hand to her mouth in shock "Oh my goodness!"

Jessie crawled over to Nishki, who had been knocked out of Barret's arms. Stroking her hair back gently, she felt for a pulse. There was none. Jessie's breath caught in her throat, and she looked over at Barret. He met her gaze, then sniffed, turning his head away to hide the moisture in his eyes. "There wasn't anythin' I could do... she was pourin' blood all down me from that damn bullet wound. I don' think she lasted long after she was shot. I didn't want to tell you."  
"Hey! You guys alright?" Iraya came bustling up, then her eyes narrowed "What's the matter with Nishki? Why isn't she moving? Is that blood?" She knelt down beside Nishki. Jessie took a breath "Iraya... Nishki was shot, she-"  
"Is she okay? We have to wake her up!" Iraya's voice steadily became more and more hysterical. She shook Nishki's shoulders gently, at first "Wake up, honey, come on." Then she slapped her face, lightly "Why aren't you waking up? Jessie, why isn't she waking up?" She shook Nishki's shoulders desperately.  
By now, the rest of the group had gathered around them. Sephiroth looked stricken "Nishki?" Sinneakh knelt down next to the still body of her friend, touching her forehead. "Iraya, I don't think she..."  
Iraya slapped Nishki's face, hard. "Nishki! Wake up! Fucking wake up! Wake up..." She buried her face in the dead girl's hair, hugging her bloody body close. "I don't understand. Anybody but Nishki! She was the most beautiful, funny, intelligent, brave..." She raised her tearful face and looked at Sinneakh pleadingly "She had more life in her than either of us..." Sinneakh placed her arm comfortingly around Iraya's shoulders, and Iraya hugged her tightly. Jessie turned away from the scene, putting a tentative hand on Barret's shoulder "Are you okay?"  
"She... she died in my arms, Jess. I could practically feel her life leaving her..."  
Jessie placed her hand on the front of his bloodstained shirt "I know, Barret. And I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..."  
Barret put his arms around her and the two close friends wept, their tough countenances dispelled for the minute as they grieved together.

Author's Note  
I stopped writing this for a long time because I wasn't getting much feedback at all, and it was sort of disheartening. Whilst I don't like saying 'if you don't review, I won't write any more' (I hate it when fanfic authors say that, I really do), It would be nice to know if anyone is reading and/or enjoying this story at all (Whoo! Insecure author alert!)  
So, if you feel like reviewing and letting me know what you think, that would be lovely.


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